Creating Character Arcs: The Masterful Author's Guide to Uniting Story Structure, Plot, and Character Development

by K.M. Weiland

Questions to Ask About Your Character’s Arc in the Climax 1. How does your character prove he is a changed person in the Climax? 2. Does the renewed attack upon his new Truth happen before the Climax or during the Climax? What are the pacing challenges of either choice? 3. How does the character’s final embrace of the Truth enable his victory in the exterior conflict? 4. Does he fully embrace the Thing He Needs in the Climax? 5. How does he use the Thing He Needs to defeat the antagonist? 6. Does he gain the Thing He Wants? 7. How has his view of the Thing He Wants changed? Does he still want it? The beginning of your story asked a question: Will the character overcome his Lie to gain the Thing He Needs? In a Positive Change Arc, the Climax answers that question with a resounding yes. More than that, it provides visual and dramatic proof of how the character has been changed by the Truth. Your character has just completed his arc. He leaves your story a better person than he